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If you’re shopping for energy efficient appliances, you know to look for the ENERGY STAR label. If you’re looking for bath fixtures, toilets, or shower heads, Water Sense gives you insight into the most water-efficient products. And the new EPEAT label provides a standard for multiple environmental attributes of home electronics.

These government-created or supported certifications help with bigger-ticket purchases… but what about day-to-day items that can impact you home environment (as well as the natural environment), and possibly your family’s health? Turns out there’s a certification program for those kinds of products, too. The Environmental Protection Agencies Design for the Environment program has largely flown under the radar since its founding in 1992, and the launch of its certification label in 1997; in those eighteen years, though, DfE has certified more than 2000 industrial and consumer products for high health, safety, and environmental standards, including cleaning products, inks, car care, and odor removal products.

If you’re thinking about any kind of home improvement or renovation, you may find yourself overwhelmed with the array of “green” choices out there. Paints, appliances, building materials, decor items… there are lots of products claiming green cred.

Of course, longevity is one of the key elements of product sustainability, so you need paints, appliances, building materials and decor items to work… and to work for your lifestyle. Architect and LEED AP Maia Kumari Gilman has a post up at Green-Buildings.com that provides an overview of some of the products she’s worked with, and which ones she really likes (and doesn’t). Among the winners:

Could you use an extra $475 a year? According to the US Department of Energy, that’s the amount the average American family could save on energy bills by implementing long-term energy efficiency changes in their home. You don’t have to start with big purchases, though: all of us can cut our energy usage (and utility bills) with some common-sense practices.

HOME is a travel notebook, showing landscapes captured from a bird’s eye view above. This film calls for a new awareness, inviting the viewer to stop for a moment in order to look at our planet and realize how we treat her treasures and her beauty.

Directed by internationally renowned French photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand, produced by world famous director Luc Besson and narrated by five-time Academy Award® nominee Glenn Close, HOME aims to change the way people see the planet and their impact on it. Shot in high definition in 54 countries and 120 locations over 217 days, the unique and first-time ever all-aerial filming style highlights the Earth’s wonders as well as its wounds and provides a necessary perspective to approach the changing environment.

Dreaming of a green home? Already got a picture in your head of your carbon neutral, low impact house? Even if it’s just an upgraded version of your current home, that picture almost certainly includes solar panels on the roof, and/or a wind turbine situated on your land.

It’s an inspiring image. In reality, it may also be one that’s going to produce more headaches (financial and otherwise) than clean energy… unless you do your homework.

Learn more on what you need to do if you want to use solar or wind energy on your property…